


The susceptibility of emotion.

by SilverInStars



Series: Omega!Tony [1]
Category: Captain America - All Media Types, Iron Man (Movies), Iron Man - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alpha Steve Rogers, Alpha!Steve, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alpha/Omega, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Author has too many feels, Avengers Family, Awkward Romance, BAMF Tony Stark, BDSM, Bottom Tony Stark, Bruce Banner & Tony Stark Friendship, Divergent Timelines, Dom Steve Rogers, Eventual Steve Rogers/Tony Stark - Freeform, Fluffiness, Howard Stark's A+ Parenting, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Light Dom/sub, M/M, Non-Penetrative Sex, Omega Tony Stark, One-Sided Steve Rogers/Tony Stark, Past Child Abuse, Post-Serum Steve Rogers, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Protective Steve Rogers, Steve Rogers Has PTSD, Steve Rogers has a crush, Tony Has Trust Issues, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark-centric, Young Tony Stark, mild Dom/Sub, omega!Tony
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-04
Updated: 2017-10-27
Packaged: 2018-09-06 13:56:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 17,823
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8754682
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SilverInStars/pseuds/SilverInStars
Summary: "The boy has no shame, yet he will do as required. He maybe prone to flamboyant displays and promiscuity, but he is smart. He'll take the route that benefits him the best. We just have to make sure to take away all other options." Tony Stark hated his father, never more than at this moment when he signed the contract bonding his son to Alpha Steve Rogers.





	1. Chapter one.

**Author's Note:**

  * For [sabrecmc](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sabrecmc/gifts).
  * Inspired by [Celestial Navigation and other Thank You Fics](https://archiveofourown.org/works/5964175) by [sabrecmc](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sabrecmc/pseuds/sabrecmc). 



> A little dust bunny I finally decided to write.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fic is inspired by @sabrecmc 's Celestial Navigation. I was really, really shy about mentioning this, since this fic is nowhere close to how amazing her fics are (go check them out!).

He was nervous.

The Shield agents had sent him here with a thin folder, a few loose sheets with information about his future alpha, everything _they thought_ he needed to know.  
  
Tony was young, but he wasn't dumb. He carelessly flipped open the folder again and his eyes zoomed in on the picture of a tall blonde man: Captain Steve Rogers. This was the man who had paid (in what form Tony still had to figure) for the ownership of a shiny new omega, fresh off the market. The Captain had a whole list of accomplishments, all of which Tony, in the twenty minute span he had been given to memorize them, despised thoroughly.  
  
Sure, he knew his father was never going to let Tony progress with his inventions and fulfill his dream of becoming the first omega to revolutionize clean energy. No, Howard Stark had put a collar and leash on Tony when he presented at twelve and was now handing the reigns over to a man, who by all valid stereotypes, was the kind to likely think "Omegas are the homemakers of society"(weird ass slogan of an advertisement that ran in the early 2000s)

Tony bit back an incredulous laugh, this was his life now. He had, for the span of his twenty-one years deigned to live rebelliously and this was his penance. He snuck a glance towards his reflection in the wide interrogation room window, making sure his eyes were not red. Talk about mortification, Tony would not let them in on his weaknesses. He rubbed his palm on his trousers and straightened his shoulders. Nothing more than to face this head on now. Maybe if he struck first, he'd be able to make a deal with the man. What could he give the alpha that Steve Rogers couldn't take from him anyway. Tony had...his inventions?

He wasn't, and never would be the perfect omega. He knew that. Omega rights had come a long way in the last hundred years, they had won the right to vote about five years ago. A lot of the current laws were being looked over and questioned, the omega citizens were given more freedom and opportunity than they could have ever hoped for in the past twenty years.

But Tony was no ordinary citizen, he was no ordinary omega. As the sole heir to Stark industries, and the revolutionary weapons manufacturer Howard Stark's protégé- there were heavy expectations for Tony to bear. The board wouldn't allow him to inherit the position of CEO without an Alpha handler (Tony refused to call the man his mate), and Tony wouldn't be able to achieve his personal goals, goals that could help society develop- clean energy, progressive prosthetic aids, and ideas that combined his studies in mechanical engineering with the biomedical field to create products to assist people in ways that could not be imagined yet- by anyone apart from Tony himself. Sure, it could be considered narcissistic, but Tony knew he could do it.

They knew he wasn't spouting a fool's word either. Tony's intelligence was no secret, in fact, he was a little disappointed that Shield's response had been to place him in an interrogation room. Surely Howard had given them the speech, _"The boy has no shame, but he will do as required. He may be prone to flamboyant displays and promiscuity, however he is smart. He'll take the route that benefits him the best. We just have to make sure to take away all other options."_

Howard had sported a conniving smirk, as he gave the same heart-melting speech to Tony's mother, Maria, just a week before signing the contract to sell Tony to the person who benefited Howard the most. Tony looked back at the folder, and the highest bidder in this plot was Captain Steve Rogers. A man of his position couldn't catch Howard's attention easily, which meant that Alpha Rogers had something special. Something, by the contents of the folder- Tony wasn't allowed to know yet.

The man was impressive, nevertheless. His records were impeccable, by his connections to Shield Tony new not to trust the man a pinch, however, (Tony couldn't help running his eyes over the finely chiseled jaw), no matter how much that straightforward gaze beckoned him to leap into their depths.  
  
There was a slight knock on the door, Tony wondered if every person who sat on the chair in an interrogation room had gotten the privilege, and the man from the picture stepped inside.

Captain Rogers was really very tall, Tony noted absent-mindedly. The man stood in front of him, back pin straight and face carved into stone like the statue of a Roman god. Tony was used to beautiful people, his life had been filled with them and he himself had heard many-a-times that he was attractive. Steve Rogers blew apart that scale. Tony stayed silent and observed the man. His buddy Rhodey had told Tony his stares could be disconcerting. He hoped this was true as he watched Alpha Rogers take the few steps, bringing him to the opposite side of the table where Tony was seated.  
  
If the Captain was affected by Tony's stare he did not show it, instead the man's large hands came to rest on the chair that, now that Tony considered it, was meant for him. They considered each other for a few seconds, before Rogers seem to come to some sort of conclusion and nodded to himself.

"Hello. I'm Captain Steve Rogers. It's nice to meet you." He introduced himself, and Tony had to resist the urge to ask the man if he ever modeled for a Barbie and Ken: Military edition. Barbie, the typical submissive omega with her sunshine blonde hair and coquettish eyes would have been a perfect partner for the man in front of Tony. Tony himself, was the complete opposite. He looked at the Alpha a little curious now, for the life of him, he couldn't figure out what about Captain Rogers could make his dad decide to break out an expensive 30 year old wine bottle in celebration, on the day the papers had been signed.

Tony lifted the folder, it flopped a little between his index finger and thumb, "I know, I got the basic summary here. Since you must have gotten the same, Let's not bother with triviality."

Rogers looked a little taken aback by Tony's words, his mouth twitched, whether in amusement on annoyance Tony didn't know, people went one way or another when dealing with Tony, "Alright Mr. Stark, then tell me," he paused here, taking a moment to asses Tony again and Tony resisted the urge to squirm under the feeling that the man could see right through him, "What can I do for you?" Steve asked.

Tony grinned, this was more his kind of playing field now. He was glad Captain Rogers was not the type to make this marriage sound like it was anything less than a deal. Tony was pretty sure he would have bolted out of the door, fuck Howard, at the slightest sign that the man thought Tony wanted to be here.  
"Now you're speaking my language Captain," Tony brought his right leg over his left and clasped his palms together with them. When Maria Stark had forced Tony to wear a four piece suit, Tony had considered staging a mutiny. Why did he have to impress an Alpha he didn't even want? But now he appreciated the layered armor in the silk outfit. "I have just one.. request, and it's non-negotiable."

Despite his bravado, Tony was nervous and he gripped his fingers tight to prevent them from shaking. He would never be able to live with himself if there were people watching this spectacle from the other end of the glass window and they caught sight of his fear. People could smell nervousness like sharks, and Tony was glad for the scent suppressants his father insisted he take, or the entire room would have been filled with the scent of his traitorous emotions.  
  
Rhodey believed in him, Pepper believed in him and Jarvis believed in him: Tony didn't need anyone else. He could do this. It was important.

It was all he had.

"I want to be able to continue my work with SI, which includes permission (he hated himself for having to use the word) to construct a full lab at any future property I may reside in."

Tony didn't know if Steve would agree. So much depended on the Captain agreeing to this. Alphas now were a lot more tolerant of working omegas. The laws stated it was illegal for employers to discriminate. Yet, Tony had never lived by the same laws as his country followed. He knew, by the contract he had signed his flowy 'Anthony Edward Stark" on, permitted Captain Rogers to do pretty much as he liked with Tony. So Tony was heavily relying on the 'goodness' of his new Alpha's heart right now.

He would vehemently hate Howard for his next nine lives. The day he usurped his father, would be the day Tony proved that he was not only his biology, and that he was so much better than the man despite his "weaker orientation".

Rogers' mouth twitched again, his eyes had a certain glint in them, and Tony could feel his ire rise at the thought of the Captain laughing at him. Well, fuck you too Rogers, your father didn't just sell you to some random alpha. Was the Alpha amused that Tony didn't ask to fall into the lap of luxury?

Tony may have stereotyped Steve before getting to know him, but having Howard's approval was already a very big negative in Tony's books.

Rogers' shifted, and Tony could almost imagine the impressive splay of Alpha muscles hidden beneath the man's military uniform. Muscles that could hurt Tony, if they chose to do so. A broken bottle to his head, a kick to his stomach..

Let's not go there.

"Alright Mr. Stark. Is there anything else you need?" Rogers asked, and gave Tony the kind of smile that probably had the bird's singing and the daisies blooming. Tony found himself a little caught off guard. He had built up enough of an argument inside himself to handle the negative response he expected, but the reply left him with emotions that had no release.

Rogers' waited, almost patiently, for Tony's reply, his brows knitting when none came, "If you can't think of anything now, feel free to let me know later."  
Tony was properly silenced, he had not prepared for this scenario and his expression must have given something away, because Rogers' eyes softened as he leaned forward, "Anything Mr. Stark." His words were earnest and insistent, and Tony nodded automatically in response.

"Call me Tony, my father is Mr. Stark," he grudgingly told the man. He didn't trust Captain Rogers yet, but the man didn't seem too interested in making Tony's life difficult in the near future.

Baby steps Tony.

"If that's settled, I have something else to tell you" For the first time since he entered the room, Steve looked uncomfortable and Tony's heart lodged in his throat.  
So it was finally time for the other shoe.

Steve turned around and looked at their reflection in the glass. Tony could see the trepidation in his own eyes, he wondered if Steve could too. Two minutes later, an agent, an alpha woman with bright red hair came in and handed Steve another folder. Shield really needed to update their tech if they were still passing around soft copies of data, Tony thought. She spared a glance at Tony and he gave her a flirtatious smile in response. This seemed to amuse her. Her smirk in response, send a chill up his spine.

 _Remind me never to piss her off_ , he thought.

Rogers cleared his throat pointedly, Tony had a feeling he was miffed about something, but Rogers was looking at the file instead of Tony so he couldn't tell for certain.

"This is confidential information Mr. Stark. However, the unique position you are in requires me to tell you this much and I wanted to be there to do it in person." Steve said, his tone was grave and when he looked up to meet Tony's eyes they were back to being the front he had on, when he first entered.

Tony's mouth was dry and he swallowed thickly, this didn't feel like a small deal. His eyes darted to the file, it probably contained the reason Howard was so eager to parcel Tony off to a mere Captain.

Steve pushed the file towards Tony, and he reached out to take it. _What have you got me into this time Howard?_ He wondered, opening the file.

Steve Rogers  
Born: 07/04/1918

Tony could hear his heart pounding in his ears as he read the tiny printed words, like the small font would help him digest their weight.

Alias: Captain America.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave a comment to let me know what you think! Thank you for reading.


	2. Chapter two.

_**Morning coffee with Deborah Jones  
Saturday June 22nd 2014** _

_The interviewer smiled at Tony, she had mastered the art of leaning forward just so in order to display sufficient amount of cleavage to satisfy her producer. Five years ago, she had been a new face to the industry. She tried out as a newscaster, but the non-obvious discrimination shifted her to the entertainment slot instead._

_Tony Stark sat on a red, one-seater couch opposite her. He looked pretty much as they described. The younger Mr. Stark had been a constant in the news since his MIT days. The omega made the headlines for his regular partying, and for dating most of the men and women in People magazine's Sexiest Alpha's of 2014. It wasn't surprising, the nineteen year old apart from being an active voice amongst the omega rights youth speakers was also the illustrious Stark family heir._

_Personally Deborah had been to more than her share of parties in her teens, no one had thought to call her a wayward omega then, sure it wasn't the figurative pat on the back her Alpha peers had received but...she looked up from her placards, the boy deserved a little more recognition than just for whom he decided to share his bi-yearly heat with. Who cared about one Omega reporter's opinions, however, her producer didn't care about the fact that Tony Stark had made a speech in a workshop hosted by MITs youth chapter, supporting heat suppressing supplements and sharing his own research in the field._

_No her producer cared about something very different, "Mr. Stark, before we end the segment I must ask: Is it true that you refused Tiberius Stane's offer to accompany you through your heat this year, and instead went to the Florida Omega heat sanctuary?" she questioned._

_Deborah didn't know what type of reaction the filming crew was hoping for, but when Tony Stark gave her a metallic grin, then looked her in the eye, saying, "Yes, the honor of spending my heat with a fellow Omega is not one that happen's often. Ty didn't really have anything to do with my decision, but okay, if you need to use an Alpha to normalize why being with people who not only understand what I'm going through, but also know the best ways to experience it safely, is a decision I would make independently - we can make it about Ty, sure," his tone was made of steel cutting open the bare pettiness of the question she had posed, and just for that moment Debby couldn't help but feel proud._

  
\--------

2016: Present.

After the meeting, Tony had been packed into the back of a black Sedan, Jarvis started the car without a question, taking the route back to the Stark mansion. Tony tapped his finger beside the cup holder part of the door. He was bonded now, all the formalities had been done with, he just had to move into his new sweet-home with his big, buff Alpha.

"Jarvis." was all he needed to say, and Jarvis quickly pulled over to the side of the road. Tony stumbled out, puking his guts all over the sidewalk, till he was reduced to coughs and dry heaving.

He had been sold, like a bag of meat.

To Captain America.

It started with a small giggle, choking up the back of his throat. He knew Captain America, the Great War soldier, hero of America. A few crazed laughs slipped between his lips. Of course Tony knew him, he had the posters up on his wall before his scent had changed from neutral to that of an omega, a little after his twelfth Birthday. This was the biggest joke his dad could play on him.

Tony's grandfather had been obsessed with finding Captain America. The man's real identity had been a secret, but his grandfather had been part of Project Rebirth and was the one to push the magic button- so to say. Once the old man had turned seventy five, he started to get senile and passed the bulk of his work to his clever son Howard Stark- Tony's father.

Howard Stark had not known the original Captain America, but he had obsessed just as much as Tony's grandfather had. Tony had been a baby when his grandfather passed away since Howard and Maria had a child much later in their lives. So he didn't have a personal connection to his grandfather's obsession, but his dad had made sure to make up for that.

Tony still remembered his father's first word's to him when he discovered his son's orientation, "If you can't become Captain America, I'm going to have to find you an Alpha who won't disappoint."

Tony was certain he was hysterical at this point. He couldn't have imagined how right his father would have been at that point. The child Tony, hurt by his father's disregard, had decided to become the kind of Omega who would never need an Alpha.

 _Fat good that did him_.

He didn't realize he was still laughing until Jarvis stepped behind him, and placed a hand on his shoulder, "Are you alright young master?" the family butler asked, face drawn with concern over his charge.

Tony pushed himself off the ground, legs wobbling a little, "I'm fine Jarvis, just had a little pity party is all. Let's get out of this cold and back into the car shall we? Rhodey'll kill me if I don't call him soon with details."

Jarvis was a clever old man, and he watched Tony carefully with narrowed eyes, "If you say so young master. However, I urge you to let me get you some tea from nearby to calm your stomach," he said, passing Tony a bottle of water. 

Tony couldn't help the rush of affection he felt for the Englishman, who had given Tony more love than his own father had.

"That would be pretty good Jarvis, though, I believe a shot of vodka would be more helpful in this situation." Tony said, his lips curling into a cheeky smile. He climbed into the back of the car, and Jarvis's almost unheard sound of disapproval made him laugh as he got comfy in the plush leather seats.

"Get Rhodey on the line, would you J?" He asked Jarvis, when he slid back into the driver's seat.

"Of course young master." Jarvis replied, and they were soon back on the road with the sound of the dial tone filling the car.

There was a click before Rhodey picked up, and Tony took a deep breath, pulling himself together and forcing a grin on his face. He hadn't told Rhodey any of this yet, wanting to settle the deal before worrying his ex-roommate. Now, with the impending conversation, it didn't feel like the best decision.

"Tones?"

"Pumpkin-pie!" Tony exclaimed with false cheer, "How's the military been treatin' you darling? You do sound a little battle worn, maybe I should call again another time. Yes, you need to rest up buddy."

"What's going on Tony?" Rhodey asked, not sounding fooled at Tony's pathetic attempt at a diversion. Their time at MIT gave Rhodey a crash course in Tony Stark 101.

So Tony sucked in some oxygen, and told him.

He expected the tirade Rhodey went on after that, asking Tony whether he was insane, or being blackmailed. Words of anger soon turned into words of worry, curses directed towards Howard not few. Tony found himself calming down while listening to his Alpha buddy get indignant and upset on his behalf.

A while later, Tony had relaxed completely into the warm seats, and Rhodey fell silent.

"I'm just worried about you Tony. I mean, sure, we worshipped Captain America as kids- but that was the guy from the comics! We don't know anything about this dude. And with how crazy your grandfather and Howard were about him, I'm not sure if it's the best idea to be bonded to the guy Tones." Rhodey said finally, and Toney could picture the furrow in his brow as his friend considered how far he should intervene, and whether this called for a Pepper-Rhodes meeting. Yup, they were definitely having that meeting, Tony thought amused and then shifted his concentration back to Rhodey, "I know, but this is the only option I've got right now. The board won't let me move forward with my own projects without a handler, and who better to shut down their opinions than Captain America. It'll work out fine Rhodes, you'll see."

This much was true, if Tony could just find out what the Captain got out of being bonded to him, he was certain they could come to a bargain of their own. When he had first seen the original folder Shield had given him of Captain Rogers', Tony had thought the man was after SI. Now, it didn't make sense, what would Captain America want from a weapons dealer. From what he knew, the guy was more about orchestrating peace, and not in the "you gotta shoot em first" way his grandfather had.

"Talk to Pepper will you?" Rhodey huffed, "I've got to go now Tones, but you gotta promise me- no more stupid decisions without telling me about them first."

Tony shrugged, though Rhodey wouldn't be able to see it, "Sure, I can promise you that, but we both know that it's one I'm unlikely to keep."

Rhodey sighed, "You're gonna be the death of me," he muttered, before the line went dead.

"Well, that went a lot better than we thought it would, didn't it Jarvis?" Tony asked dryly.

"I'm sure it did, Master Tony." Jarvis replied, like the sarcastic little shit he was, and Tony knew he couldn't love anyone more than he loved the few people he had.

"Time to call the third musketeer now."

Pepper would not be too pleased with him either.

\-----

Once he got back home, his parents were gone, not that Tony expected any different. The time they spent home came as more of a surprise to him. Tony didn't live in the mansion either, it was just one of those extra ones his family bought, cause having one in New York was necessary for people as rich as they. Food was a necessity for the hungry, money for the poor, strength for the weak and a two story mansion in the heart of New York for the Stark family.

Tony shook his head, he didn't come here to meet Howard and Maria anyway. He walked past the large, lavish hall, decorated tastefully with contemporary modern art, past the five empty bedrooms with soft goose feather pillows, until he arrived at the lone rickety door leading to the basement of this house.

Tony resisted the urge to turn around and get right back out of the place. This used to be his grandfather's house, the place where he spent his final days walking through the corridors mumbling about how Captain America would come to save them all. Tony straightened his back and pulled out an old-fashioned key from his pocket.

The lock took some jiggling to open since it had been shut for a while. He tugged the door open, sneezing at the burst of dust particles. His dad had refused to touch this room after George Stark passed away. In many ways, Steve Rogers had been the most prominent male figure to all the three generations of Starks.

The room was as he remembered. The old projector George spent hours behind, watching the same movies from when the Captain had toured- promoting the old war bonds, still sitting untouched.

George had said that it was the serum which made Rogers the man he became, Rogers was his greatest creation. Howard, who grew up in a time when the enigma of Captain America- a hero who kept everyone looking towards the future, believed that the Captain had been born with the heart of a true Alpha and all the 40s rhetoric that went with those beliefs.

 _"You'll see Tony,"_ Howard had said to him when Tony was ten, patting his shoulder, Rogers' true identity had been a secret to Tony as well then, he just knew the man as Captain America. His grandfather had given Howard the clearance only after he realized his health wouldn't permit him to continue his research any longer, _"We'll find him and then you'll see."_

What if I don't want to see dad?

At fourteen.

_You're useless boy._

_You couldn't get one thing right._

_You're just a slick-assed whore now._

The screaming. His screaming.

Tony looked up at Captain America's smiling face, upper half hidden behind the cowl, waving towards a crowd who were probably all looking up at him with the same admiration as Howard and George had.

Well, too bad for Rogers, Tony wasn't anything like his father and grandfather, and he would prove it.

He could see the similarities now in the jaw line and physique. If Captain America had any of the same ideals as Tony's father had, he would be in for a very cold awakening.

One Tony would be more than happy to provide.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this gives us some background detail and now you guys know more about where Tony's coming from. More SteveXTony in the next chapter to make up for the lack in this one. 
> 
> Updates will be every Monday and Thursday with an average of 2K words per chapter.


	3. Chapter three.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's Monday here- which means chapter update!

First was round one: which contained briefing Steve on the various available Omega, who most importantly had all the necessary connections Shield required. Howard and Maria praying against all hope that Tony's true nature wouldn't jump out of his Facebook profile picture. It wasn't even his actual account, but one they had set up in the hopes of wooing the prospect that was Captain Rogers.

Then, after the Captain, by his own free will picked Tony as his future bride(ahem), came round two: which were the negotiations, laying the big cards on the table so to say. Howard agreed to sign a weapons deal with Shield along with a few other bows and ribbons, and Shield promised to include SI in on some Top Secret project (this is currently the crux of what Tony did not know, and needed to find out).

Amongst all the to and fro, the topic of Tony's future habitat, (we can't say home and make this too personal- Starks got hives from personal), came up- and Shield were pretty flexible with the decision since Rogers didn't have a permanent home yet.

Howard jumped on those words like a lion, it's prey. He _very benevolently_ suggested that Alpha Rogers could move into Stark Tower with Tony since they had the space and it would just be the matter of making small arrangements (just the usual moving a cushion or two, and maybe breaking down a couple of walls). Shield seemed pretty happy with the offer as well, and Howard shook hands with Agent Coulson over some expensive brand of English tea.

Tony was already living at the Tower, he'd moved there at seventeen after he returned home from graduation. First because they had the better lab, and second cause he wanted to get away from the quiet _and_ get away from the noise. The top two floors were his, well now his and Rogers' since the man would be moving in today.

Tony stood in the lobby, fingers entangled and twisting, he had spent the two weeks since he met the man doing his research. He had stats that went on for pages and pages, he could tell you how fast Rogers could make ten miles (very fast), yet Tony didn't have the information that would be crucial to him.

_What was Steve Rogers like as a person?_

Sure, Tony knew that the Captain was supposed to be the perfect American dream, he saved the world from the Nazi's on Wednesday and plucked kittens from trees the following Saturday. Tony also knew how the media could be manipulated by the government to construe a story that fit their liking. Even Tony's own PR team managed to keep most of his exploits from hitting the tabloids (7/10 on a regular basis, Tony always made sure that the three that got past, were the good ones), so how could he be certain the Captain wasn't an Alpha douchebag like every other military nut Tony had the pleasure of acquainting himself with till date.

He craned his neck towards the automatic doors at the entrance again, Happy, his long time loyal bodyguard- a happy-go-lucky Beta who personally took Tony's security very seriously- gave him a raised brow. Happy did not like the arrangement, his foot was tapping nervously against the floor and tony allowed himself to be distracted by the clicking sound.

Two minutes later the doors swished open and big, blond and familiar stepped through looking, Tony thought peering up at the man, a little overwhelmed by the beauty of the Stark building, or like he'd just eaten an exceptionally sour lemon- Tony couldn't really tell.

"I see you found your way over here fine Rogers." Belatedly, Tony realized maybe he should be polite and call the man Captain, or Alpha, or something. _Wonder what expression he would make if I called him hubby,_ Tony pondered with an inner snicker. He really was going to get into trouble sooner than later if this kept up.

Rogers looked back at Tony a little unsure, the man really was beautiful. It was like God(or whoever had humanity on their creation roster) hired every single historically relevant painter and sculptor and asked them to produce the most gorgeous manly man he could breathe life into. Rogers' clear blue eyes had to be the icing on the cake, if Tony had met him in any other circumstance he would have definitely had his flirting game on full blast. Right now, his eyes dropped to the Shield emblem on the Alpha's sweater, not so much.

Rogers smiled at him, "It's good to see you again Mr. Stark, this is an...interesting place." Rogers placed the duffle bag he was carrying down beside his feet and extended his hand for a shake. He still looked a little unsure,and once again Tony felt like he was dealing with something out of his depth. What happened to the man in the perfectly ironed military uniform, who had looked at Tony with stoic eyes and an equally unreadable expression during their last meeting? Tony shook his hand, it was large, almost engulfing Tony's and very warm. The tiny squished omega part of Tony shivered, if palms could give hugs, this would be it.

"It's Tony remember?" Tony replied, and Roger's smile got a tad warmer. "Call me Steve then."

Happy cleared his throat pointedly and Tony pulled his hand back quickly. He could have been certain that Rogers had tightened his loose grip by a fraction before letting go, but Tony was obviously going crazy. Captain America didn't want him, this was a deal with Howard. _You've got to stop overthinking the handshake Tony, it's an insult to your genius._

"This is my bodyguard Happy, he's pretty awesome. Happy, Steve Rogers, my new handler." The word slipped out before he could reign it in and Steve was looking down at him with surprise. Great, he hadn't spent two minutes in the man's presence and made a mess of it.

"I mean, my alpha. Haha, English is so confusing- what with words sounding similar. Is it The or is it Thee?" Tony babbled, then spun around and beelined towards the private elevator leading up to his quarters.

His and _Steve's_ now.

He could hear Happy make his own introductions, bless the man, after which the two followed him. The ride up was awkward, Steve stood in one corner, Tony in the other and Happy formed a sturdy wall between them. Tony bit his lip nervously and sneaked a glance to the side, Steve's expression had returned to containing a depressing lack of emotion, similar to when Tony first met him. Tony felt a pang of regret, but then he shook his head, this was no time to be falling for his father's ploy. He didn't know Rogers and he didn't care to either.

_You'll have to sleep with him tonight._

Tony's hands tightened into fists. He never thought he would be reduced this, but he could do it. He'd slept with plenty of alphas, why bring in shame he never had before. He squared his shoulders a little hard, and walked a little brisker into the now shared double floor apartment space. 

He was building an AI that could perform all the menial tasks like showing people around, till that was finished (he was pretty close, he just couldn't get the final coding right) it was on him to be the gregarious host. So he took Rogers around, avoiding the bedroom at first, then finally plucking up his courage he pushed the door open with a careless flare. "So this is where we'll be spending our first night of everlasting love." He scratched the back of his neck, and walked to the adjacent bathroom, "Overall pretty much everything you need Captain," he said, looking at his reflection in the mirror above the sink. "If you require anything else you can ask the staff below, don't worry they get paid more than enough to be able to handle the extra grunt work. If that's all.." he trailed off looking at reflection of Steve standing behind him in the doorway, boxing him into the bathroom.

Tony could feel slight panic building up, was this it? He looked behind Steve to see if Happy was nearby and then cleared his throat, "Can I help you Captain?"

"Do you hate me?" Steve asked him, and Tony had to take a second or two to choke on thin air, "What- I mean huh, what made you think that?" He asked turning around to face Rogers.

Steve stayed by the door, he looked at Tony's face and then sighed taking a step back, "I thought- I thought you had agreed to this," he tossed his wrist up in a sloppy gesture between them. "If you're being forced, that's not what I want. I can talk to them, we can cancel-"

This time Tony felt a different kind of panic, "I don't hate you." He interrupted quickly, Steve's raised brow told him that he didn't believe him, "I just don't like you, it's not a _you_ thing entirely." Tony winced at his own admission, "It's a _thing_. But," he continued when it looked like Roger's was going to protest, "I want this. I _need_ this."

Steve looked at Tony for a while, his furrowed brow creasing and Tony focused on that point so he wouldn't have to look into those piercing blue eyes while waiting for Steve's response. He could feel the heat Steve radiated in the cold chill, the man was like a walking furnace. Must have been pretty useful during his previous omega's heats. If he even had a previous omega. _Don't get too curious Tones, you know what lies there._

"This is not an ordinary situation for either of us. However, if you ever feel like you want out, I need you to be able to tell me Tony. It's not going to be easy...being my omega." Steve said the words slow, keeping his eyes on Tony and making sure his words got through. When Tony finally caved and looked him in the eyes, the misery there made him feel like an asshole. Rogers was an emotional rollercoaster he had not expected. The stern Captain from the interrogation room yes, the smiling poster boy from the old movies, definitely, but not this- whatever this was.

"Okay yeah." He shrugged out lamely, not really knowing how to respond to that. Rogers, _Steve_ , seemed to accept it for what it was. He walked back into their room, opening his bag and placing a few things out on the bed.

Tony shut the bathroom door behind him, and entered the bedroom, "I'll ask Happy to order in some food okay." He wanted to get out of the tense room, Steve barely looked up, just gave him a small nod in acknowledgement.

He was down in the lab calling Pepper while Dummy, his oldest bot, poked and prodded at his arm. Pepper picked up by the third ring. She was wearing a formal business suit, and looked a little harried- they definitely didn't pay _her_ enough.

"Pepper, pep, love of my life. You got to help me here." Tony whined, trying to get the full effect out of his infamous puppy dog eyes. Pepper rolled her eyes at him from the screen and tucked a lock of hair behind a ear. "What's going on now Tony? The last time you called me with that expression, you were bonded to Captain America."

So Tony told her.

Pepper hummed in the appropriate places and when he was done she tapped her black ball point pen against her lower lip. "Well despite you trying to convince yourself otherwise, he might be a good guy Tony."

Tony rolled his eyes up heavenward, "Didn't you hear me earlier Pep! Howard picked him" he exclaimed.

Pepper frowned at him, "Well Howard picked me too, and I like to think you and I get along fine," she said.

This silenced him and Tony pouted at the screen, "You know I hate it when you make sense, the kind I'm happier ignoring," he replied.

Pepper rolled her eyes affectionately, "If that's all, I'll take my leave Mr. Stark."

"Have a good day Ms. Potts."

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading guys! Please leave a comment to let me know what you think :)


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long delay guys! Will be mostly back on track now :).

Dinner was an awkward affair over some Hakka noodles and sweet and sour chicken- or was the soup sweet and sour? Tony couldn't really tell, as the time ticked by his senses had numbed and the food was just sandpaper against his tongue.

Steve watched him while they ate, he tried to be discrete, but Tony's omega intuition pinged in awareness. They were seated at Tony's kitchen counter, facing each other. Steve huffed, when Tony scooped a polite amount of chicken into his plate, after refusing the soup.

Tony cleared his throat, trying to think of a topic of conversation that might suit both their tastes. He was envious of the 'Guide to Tony Stark' experience Steve had probably received from Shield, or even the Internet. Thinking about it, everything Tony knew about Steve had a confidential sticker attached to it, accompanied by an 'appropriate authorization required' level almost impossible to bypass.

What he knew, on reading the file he had been given, further, was that Steve had been discovered six months prior by an operation led by Howard Stark. Once the Capsicle had been defrosted, Shield had jumped on their illustrious prey in red, white and blue and recruited him for a Top secret project. Tony had yet to figure what the project was about. He was not Tony Stark for nothing however, he managed to hack into the tertiary levels and picked up on a name: 'Avengers'

"I heard you graduated from MIT, what was that like?" Steve asked, breaking Tony away from his thoughts. This was unexpected, he didn't think the Captain, who sat stiff backed and kept shooting Tony's plate tiny glares, would be the one to attempt conversation.

' _Aren't you giving the man too little credit, Tony?'_

As expected Pepper turned out to be right, maybe the Capsicle wouldn't be so bad to have around.

"Yup, got in at fourteen, sailed through the next four years and now here I am, coding in the dim light of SI's brilliance." He wondered when his constant sarcasm would start to become a turn off. Hopefully not too soon, he didn't really want to go back to his Dad being Tony's alpha guardian. Steve had already been an improvement considering he didn't head to the liquor cabinet the moment Happy left them to it.

_Don't get too comfortable Tones._

"That's a young age to have to leave home. Must have been tough on you." Steve inquired.

Tony was a little taken aback. He leaned forward, resting his chin on his palm, "Oh cap, haven't you heard? " he asked, voice a little teasing, "Stark men are made of Iron. I was groomed as the son of Howard Stark, received the best of everything- most of all my education."

Steve looked at Tony, "Doesn't mean you weren't a kid too. It's pretty amazing you managed to accomplish so much despite what couldn't have been the most comfortable odds. I spent most of my childhood switching between home and the hospital- was pretty sick back then," Steve stated, throwing Tony a small self-depreciating smile, "if I had someone like you around then, I think it would have been pretty inspirational," he continued, blond locks falling into his eyes as his nonchalantly took another bite from his bread.

Tony picked up his fork and speared it through his chicken, "Society tends to think inspiration should be reserved for alphas. They'd much rather concentrate on my lack of ability at being the optimal homemaker, and whether I'm ever gonna stop being a disgrace and let Ty back into my bed," he paused, "well that's no issue now, since you're here."

He placed his fork back into his plate with a clink, and folded his hands in front of him, "I know that our situation isn't the most recurring of equations, what with you being a superfluous military meta-alpha, and me being the unruly omega they've finally managed to collar; who comes with a neatly parceled weapons deal. But tell me Rogers, you had other options. People who would fit into the category of Captain America's omega so much better than I ever could. I'll be upfront with you, if my dad couldn't change me- I doubt you ever held the idea of success. So, Steve, why did you pick me?" Tony asked, bracing himself.

The heavy pause before Steve answered, set Tony on edge. Then, Tony wished for the silence, because he could see Steve closing off, "I never wanted Captain America's Omega. I just..." He trailed off here frowning resolutely at their cutlery. "This is not easy." He ended finally.

What was that even?

"Well, that's two of us." Tony replied, unable to hide the tinge helplessness that crept into his tone. The agent guy, the one who had come to give Tony his few pages thick Captain America folder before the bonding had told Tony that Steve was reserved, didn't talk much, brilliant tactician though- The agent had been pretty emotionless himself, but there was a gleam in his eyes that told tony he was definitely a fan.

Steve shrugged at him, broad shoulders shifting in a graceful movement, "They showed me pictures, couple of interviews too," his brow wrinkled, "The media have gotten so vicious through the years" His eyes darted up to look at Tony, "You uh, they showed me your projects too. At MIT, the robots?"

Tony's eyes widened, he found himself grinning for the first time, "They showed you my bots?" he asked eagerly, dragging his chair closer to the table, "Which one? I built this really cool droid out of a microwave in my first year. The thing could bake you muffins, as well as self detonate at command! Can you imagine, a microwave that blows itself up! The irony!" He gesticulated wildly with a cheeky grin, and Rogers just blinked at him, looking a little taken aback by Tony's enthusiasm before he cleared his throat and looked away from the sudden attention. "No, uh, I missed the pleasure of seeing that one," he replied dryly, he rubbed the back of his head looking a little shy, "It was a helper bot I think? Like this giant arm." He held his palm parallel to the ground, trying to demonstrate the approximate height.

"Oh" Tony fell silent, moving back into his seat, "You mean DUM-E, the-they showed you DUM-E. Of all the idiotic things to show off..." he trailed off, half in certain embarrassment that his expression would betray the fond pride he felt in the moment. "I was hungover when I built him." _Busy trying to forget the fact that dad only called me on my birthday to check up on those missile sensors he wanted._

Tony had lived and breathed in the labs from his infant days. As a toddler he tightened in bolts, and at six he got his first acid burns from a chemical spill. They weren't memories he liked to recall, but it was also on the very same birthday he'd decided to build DUM-E, instead of some dumb sensors.

DUM-E, who couldn't do a single thing perfectly since his creation, had been the perfect distraction for Tony from his life as the mostly unwanted omega child. He taught the boy everything, never changed his coding, and kept talking to the bot until his loneliness started to subside.

 _They showed him DUM-E._ As much as the bot was not Tony's most well operative creation, he was glad that DUM-E was Steve's first look into Tony's work. It made this whole thing feel a little less like the business sham that it was.

Steve was looking at him curiously, "You okay Tony?" He questioned, his fingers gripping and releasing the counter, like they were busying themselves from doing something else.

Tony shook his head, maybe it was getting late, "I'm fine, I zone out a lot. You'll get used to it." He waved half heartedly getting up from his seat, "We should, um, get to bed soon. Or I think we should, does Captain America have office hours?"

Steve chuckled, "I'll be going to Shield in the morning, yes, actually.." He looked at Tony, with Tony standing and him seated their eyes met easily and he could sense the nervousness in Steve's eyes, before Steve reigned all his emotions in and continued, "I was hoping you'd join me."

Tony's brow furrowed, "Is there another interview? Do I have to ask Director Fury for your hand in marriage- well it's too late for that now, since the papers have been signed and all-"

"Not for an interview, but..can you trust me on this Tony?" Steve asked, all earnestness and cupcakes, puppy eyed blues boring into Tony.

_Stark men were made of Iron._

"Okay. I mean, it's not been a day and you're bringing out the big guns- but I can deal. In exchange, if any of those agents touch a hair on my head, I'm blowing that place up. No questions asked. Don't think I'm not capable." Tony replied, crossing his arms in a defensive posture, what was it about the American wonder boy that made it so damn difficult to deny him. Was this how his won those wars? went out there and batted his blue eyes at the Nazis. Tony considered their current president- well that quite possibly could have worked if the airhead brand remained the same.

Steve looked surprised, "You're agreeing? Just like that? They told me I'd have to tempt you with R&D at least." He mumbled the last bit, looking at Tony like he was waiting for the other shoe to drop.

"Ah ah ah- Who said it's without due compensation? I'm working on this program right now, just some harmless software. Shield security would be the perfect place to test it out." Tony grinned.

They washed up after that, on Steve's insistence, ignoring Tony's avid reluctance. 

"So...bed?" Tony asked Steve after, feeling highly uncomfortable but trying not to show it. He had slept with Alphas before, _but this is Captain America,_ a voice in his head echoed. All the discomfort he had let go off towards the end of the dinner came cascading back in waves.

Steve looked uncomfortable too, he was silent again as they shuffled along to the bedroom, once they both were done washing up, they stood to either side of the gigantic king sized bed. "I hope you don't mind me sleeping in here. If you want me to leave I will." He said softly, looking anywhere but at Tony.

Tony shifted from foot to foot, he wanted to say yes, but knowledge of what his side of the contract was held him back.

"No, we're adults not simpering pre-teens. And if they've failed to mention it Cap, I'm no blushing virgin." Tony said, trying to hide his own nervousness with arrogance, he climbed into the bed shutting his eyes firmly. He could feel Steve's hesitation in the air, before the bed dipped beside him, the rooms sensors had taken care of the lights and they were bathed in darkness.

Tony waited with baited breath, would Steve continue to be gentle as he had been- or would he show Tony his true colors now. Alpha's tended to get more aggressive in bed, even the most seemingly docile ones had liked pushing Tony down.

Tony, sucked in his breath, and Steve shifted.

 


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve's POV!

Nightmares.

The earliest one Steve could remember was from when he was eight. He had spent the night coughing while his mother rubbed his back, whispering soothing words into his ears. His mother had been so kind and patient with her sickly son. He had fallen asleep in her arms only to wake up again hours later. His nightmares then, didn't differ from reality. The choking of his breath and the hacking pain through his chest.

As a young adult, Steve dreamt about the war, about rushing into battle alongside his fellow countrymen. His alpha instincts drove him to protect, but more than that, Steve's own tendency to not back down without a darn good fight. Bucky used to grumble at him for getting into tussles in the back alleys of their street, said Steve's spirit was too great for his body to contain.

Steve always thrummed with the desire to do something with his own two hands. He wanted to _do so much_. Then came Erskine with the serum, and suddenly Steve's body could handle his spirit. It was exhilarating, he would always be the little guy- he knew that. He could never forget the experiences his mother raised him with, but with the power in his new body- _he could do_.

So Steve invested his life into it, fought with a singleminded determination. The Howling Commandos and Hydra- two opposing sides of his new life that made his purpose whole. It was also the first time people started looking at Steve. He was inexperienced and oblivious, but his comrades would tease him about the show girls coming round the bars to maybe get a glimpse of Captain America. Of course, his secret identity didn't allow him the opportunity to indulge, and, while the women were beautiful- Steve remained impassive.

Sometimes the question would pop up, "Blonde or Brunette?". They were young-blooded males, sharing smirks and conspiring grins. Steve would answer, without really considering, " _Brunettes_ "

That's when they started teasing him about Peggy Carter. She was a beautiful beta, with dark eyes and an incredibly strong aura that could fill any room she walked into. She was beautiful, perfect even, but she was not the one for Steve. Steve preferred his brunettes much certainly of the opposite gender. He had worked so hard to get to where he was, so with the looming illegality of his orientation, Steve had just ducked his head at the teasing, allowing it to grow into an appropriate shield.

Then he found himself time traveling 70 years into the future. Sure, it was nothing like the fancy machinery George Stark used to ramble about back in the day, but soon after being thawed out he was debriefed on their current affairs. The world was still in trouble, nuclear power was a thing now, and Captain America was very much needed. The number of fellas in funny suits had increased too- there was Batman, spider man, super man, Wonder Woman...

Steve was sure he was in over his head, the 21st century took him back to the moment in Erskine's lab, as they shut him in the mental chamber and tiny Steve Rogers realized he had bitten more than he could chew, but went ahead with it anyway.

But...his brain apparently didn't work that way. There were sudden flashbacks, he would find himself in one of the history classes Shield setup for him, holding his professor to the wall growling in French under his breath. It had taken Shield two hours to take him down. He could have _killed_ a man.

He spent the following month on edge, moping around the Shield training facility as the new recruits gave him a wide berth. The nightmares now were filled with the war, cold, Bucky, Peggy and his ma. Steve would watch them die, one by one, unable to do anything until the cold swallowed him up and spat him out, he would wake, eyes snapping wide open, his heart thundering a mile a minute.

Somewhere between battling depression due to PTSD and going on covert operations- he was introduced to Natasha and Clint. Black Widow and Hawkeye were precise and deadly; even more so when teamed together. Natasha won their first sparring session, then tapped a finger against Steve's back and told him to call her Nat.

Clint was pure energy. The beta always had a trick up his sleeve, one look from Nat would have him spilling all his plans, however. Steve envied their platonic bond, it reminded him of Bucky.

Two months into their meeting, Nat came back with Dr. Bruce Banner. Steve thought the man had an incredible amount of patience with all the yoga he did, and the tea he drank, at least he had, until he met the _hulk_.

They were Steve's team, and he could feel a bit of the ground build back up under him. But in Shield eyes his recovery was not quick enough; so the therapist made a suggestion. _Why not get him an omega partner?_

Biology dictated that Omegas were the centre of any pack, they were the double sided sticky tape. Omegas weren't large in population however, and out of the ten present on the Shield facilities, three were senior citizens, four were married and the remaining were in relationships.

So Shield set out to research and Steve soon found himself in one of the conference rooms, as Maria Hill flipped through picture after picture on a large presentation screen.

It had taken him three seconds, after seeing the picture of the gorgeous young brunette with a sharp grin and clever, gleaming honey eyes, to make his choice. Steve would admit later to not really listening to Agent Hill's talk about contracts and Stark Industries, too wound up in the long lashes blinking affectionately at a robotic arm that beeped up at said omega excitedly.

It was his chance, he didn't have to hide anymore...and Steve, he snuck another glance at the mischievous face, he wanted to be reckless just one more time.

Tony Stark had taken Steve's breath away from their first meeting. He was everything about the future wrapped into a compact body. He thought quick, moved with a dancer's grace and filled up silences with words that spun around Steve's mind. Steve was certain Bucky would be telling him he was crazy, Steve knew as well, he could see how Tony skittered around him nervously. Tony's obvious apprehension hurt Steve more than he thought would be possible for a man he met twice. He steeled himself, decided to reconsider it all- Tony was obviously being made to do this against his will.

Swallowing his disappointment Steve decided to end the bond contract, he would ensure Tony wouldn't be harmed by his decision. At least, Steve had been ready to do the right thing, but then, he brought up DUM-E during their dinner conversation, and Tony smiled at him in a way that made him wonder if his asthma was back again.

And he found himself instead, asking Tony if he could stay.

He was an asshole, and it was entirely his fault when he found himself in the depths of another nightmare. _His Ma, the cold, he was trying to reach for her, but it was never enough. He was screaming, his hands shooting out in frustration, why, why couldn't he ever save them, save Buck who always had his back, save beautiful Peggy who had guarded Steve's secret._

_The cold started to encroach, building up from his toes freezing his veins, curling around the tight knots of fear in his chest. Steve wanted to fall into it, and forget, just forget. They should have never taken him out of the ice. He didn't deserve this second chance, he should be on the other side with his Ma._

_He should just..._

"Steve?"

_He heard a tentative voice call out into the dark depths of his obsessive cold. Steve frowned, he wanted to be left alone, didn't they understand._

"Steve it's me Tony. You're having a nightmare buddy. It's just a nightmare."

_The voice was oddly soothing, Steve could feel his cold start to melt, his eyes fell shut as his let the lilting cadence wash over him._

"That's it, C'mon cap, you'll be okay"

Steve eyes snapped open, cold sweat breaking across his forehead, his pulse rate through the roof.

"You're in the Stark Tower, New York City. And it's 3:32 AM on a Monday morning." Tony's voice informed him calmly and Steve's mind took to his presence like an anchor. The omega pheromones filling up the room going a long way in helping him calm down.

He turned to his side to meet wide honey brown eyes, flecked with bits of green. Tony had moved a little away from him and was now giving him the first kind look he had seen on the man's face since their initial meeting. It caused Steve's cold body to warm up bit by bit.

"Are you okay Steve?" Tony asked carefully, pulling at the edge of his pajama top and worrying his bottom lip. Steve found an eerie calm settle over him in watching Tony, despite the traumatic nightmare he'd just had. He licked his dry lips before replying, "Yeah, I'm good. I guess now you know why I can't make this work with Captain America's omega..." He quirked his lips in an attempt at a smile, but it probably landed in the vicinity of a grimace.

Tony looked at him speculatively, "You get nightmares often,"

"Yeah" Steve replied simply, starting to feel his condition stabilize as they spoke. "Almost every other night since they found me."

At this, Tony's brows shot up, "And Shield thought I was a good idea? You know what, don't answer that- I don't want to know. You need some water or anything Cap?" Tony was still as a person could be, and yet the nonchalant way he was treating Steve's nightmare, like it was something normal, was comforting.

"No, don't go." He winced at the desperation laced in his own words, "I mean, you should just go back to sleep. I don't want to disturb you more than I have."

Tony nodded at him, "Alright, mind if I come a little closer though? I don't fancy falling off the edge of the bed." He waited for Steve to nod in reply, then shifted closer pulling the blankets back around him. "Just wake me up if you need anything cap."

With Steve's heightened senses, he was easily able to detect that the smaller man didn't fall back to sleep. Instead, the two men spent the rest of the early morning on the bed, one feigning sleep in silent accompaniment.

Steve knew he wouldn't be able to back out from this, even if it made him an asshole.

It was 7:30 AM when Tony finally fell asleep again.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do let me know your thoughts! This chapter mainly provides an insight into Steve's pov. If you'd like to see more of that let me know: or if you miss Tony's pov XD.


	6. Chapter six.

Once tony woke up again, his eyes burned a little from lack of sleep and his muscles ached in a way that begged him to remain cocooned into the sheets and nuzzle the warm, apple cinnamon scent soaking his pillows. He felt like a cat, rubbing his face on the soft cloth. Soon, awareness started to sink in. He nended to be awake now, didn't he? He had a thing to do. So he groggily rolled out of bed with great reluctance and tumbled into the adjoining bathroom, stripping off his clothes and stepping directly under the shower. The first cold shock of water startled him and cleared the sleep fog surrounding his mind. With that, he realized the situation he was in.

Just yesterday, Captain America had moved into the tower, into Tony's home. He was pretty sure the fourteen year old in him was going through some kind of existential crises. Because sure, Tony was different from George or Howard, two generations of his family who had worshipped the very ground Cap treaded on. Tony was different, and _yet_. His equation towards the Captain would always be complicated at best, as a toddler he had been encouraged to foster an admiration, to consider the captain a hero. Tony hadn't been allowed to watch cartoons, or to collect superhero cards the way the kids at his private boarding school had, but he owned every piece of Captain America merchandise sold, courtesy his father.

However, the Captain wasn't something simple as a hero to Tony, no. He was a visage that clung to every moment of Tony's life. He was every blotched science project. He was the framed posters in his grandfather's house, and he was the concept of alcoholism attached to the Stark name, burning molten down Tony's throat with each drink.

Tony knew many would fault him for the inherent disdain he held for the Captain. It was cowardly to place the fault of his prior generations on a man who couldn't control the effects of the symbol of hope he encompassed. But Tony had nothing except his disdain, he had been raised to follow in his father and grandfather's footsteps, expected to pour everything he had into finding captain America.

The water, now hot against his skin lifted up into a steam causing Tony to take a breath through his mouth. Last night had been not entirely unexpected. But Tony wanted to laugh, just so that he wouldn't cry. They had prepared him for that as well. He had not known as a child. The first time was when he was ten, and made to lie in the same bed as an unknown soldier. The man had not moved an inch from his side of the bed, but Tony's preteen heart had hammered through the night. There were few more instances of the same, where he had to interact with alpha soldiers, and Tony now understood how well planned his life had been.

He got out of the shower, drying his hair with a towel and changed into a pair of jeans and a green button down. He trudged out to find Steve in the kitchen, his body blocking the sink entirely as he washed a couple of dishes.

His shoulders stiffened, probably, as he scented Tony in the room. Tony stuffed his hands into his pockets, aiming for nonchalant. He usually took his suppressants after breakfast as per his doctor's orders and Rogers, Steve, would just have to tolerate it till then.

He shuffled over to the coffee machine, glad find a brewed batch. His first sip was wondrous, and not caring for the indecent sounds he was emitting, cause _coffee_ , and just _nnngh_ , he inhaled another two cups, before daring to look at Steve again.

Steve's eyes were fixed to the faucet, the back of his neck and the tips of his ears fire engine red. He opened and closed his mouth a few times, "Do you..uh...that's, you really like coffee, huh?" He said finally, rubbing the back of his neck as though scrubbing the color away.

Tony grinned, Cheshire and proud, "It's the single greatest beverage in existence. It would be blasphemy to do anything but worship the very existence of it."

"I see" Steve replied simply, lips twitching in amusement. He pushed a plate of scrambled eggs and bacon in Tony's direction. "I made breakfast." He said, and the puppy eyed look Steve was giving Tony almost made him regret what he'd have to admit, "That's great," he said, looking at the plate, "I really appreciate the effort Steve, I do, but..."

Steve's face fell at his words, shoulders slumping, "Have you changed your mind?" He asked, looking like the words discomforted him, but he was determined to utter them anyway, "You always have a choice Tony, if you want to back out-"

"What?!" Tony's eyes widened and his hands came up to halt Steve's line of thought, "Okay first, I'm a little offended by the number of times you've been asking me this Captain, Steve. I mean, I get that you're trying to...respect my wishes, or something, but I am a grown adult, or well, a newly grown adult- still counts, no matter what Rhodey says, just cause he's a measly three years older. That's barely anything in jellyfish years, or tree years, and I'm spiraling here, but well, if I've said I'm in, I'm in. That said, I'm vegetarian. It's this health thing pepper has me on, she wanted me to go vegan, and this was my compromise. So yeah, that's all." Tony shrugged out (It was a different matter that the only reason he was still in this mess of a situation so that he could continue his work, work that could help millions)

"Oh" Steve said, after a silence, "You're vegetarian?" He asked once more, echoing Tony's words.

"Yup"

"Cucumber and tomato sandwiches?" He offered.

Tony let out a sigh of relief, "Sounds awesome"

\--------

Tony grinned, he was waiting for Steve in one of the Shield conference rooms. On arrival, they had been separated since Steve was getting debriefed on some secret mission Tony was not allowed to know about. Tony would have pouted, had he not better plans of his own. His stark tab was in hand and he typed across the screen with quick jabs, unsure when the shield agents would be back.

He had been developing a secret program for a while now, it was an advanced hacking system with a learning program. So far, the testing stages had been phenomenal, of course the program could do so much more than simple hacking. This was something that could make Obi cream is pants, not that Tony was ever going to let that grease bug get his hands on it.

Tony had worried about what Steve would be like once they spent time together. With expectations from a lifetime of experience engrained into him, there was no way he wouldn't have certain set ideas. Steve had pretty much thrown a bowling ball at most of his preconceived judgements. Tony concluded he was either a true gentlemen, or a very good actor.

Typing in the last set of key coding, Tony grinned to himself as he was introduced to Shield's mainframe. Hacking into Shield was no easy feat, and Tony was quite proud of himself. Howard had been the one to build the base structure, but that was yet another generation, and Tony’s nimble fingers danced across his tablet in glee, immediately going to the status report they had on him so he could find out what they were up to.

Tony soon found what he was looking for, and he read through the information silently, his expression growing stormier by the minute. He was just about to save the data when the door to the conference room he was in, opened, and half of Steve’s body showed its way in, somehow managing to look sheepish and relieved simultaneously.

“Tony, I’m so sorry. I didn't think they would keep us for that long.” He sighed, stepping further into the room and showcasing the line of people waiting behind him.

Tony remained silent, even as his emotions thrummed beneath his skin. They filed in one by one, faces he had seen not thirty seconds ago attached to his name in the Shield files. The unsuppressed scents of alpha and beta mixed well, Tony thought snidely. How many years had it been since he’d been allowed to release his pheromones in public without being either in danger of an unsolicited assault, or being labeled a slut? Probably, before he presented as omega.

It was funny how utterly unfair being denied simple things could feel. Tony could crack a joke about it, probably. ‘Learn to take a joke’ was after all only the third most common statement thrown at omega rights activists.

Tony decided to ignore all the giant elephants in the room, and instead zoned in on the agent. “Hello Agent Coulson, it’s nice to see you outside of a interrogation room. Wonderful even. Change in scenery really can displace one's perspective,” Tony’s voice was low and teasing, but the sharp lilt did not go unmissed, and everyone in the room tensed a little. Good. Tony thought, they should know to keep their guards up around him.

“You see, I was fiddling around the Shield system a little,” Tony continued.

That was enough for understanding to dawn on Coulson’s face. He looked a little contrite for a second, before the expression washed off his face, “That information is confidential Mr. Stark"

“Yes, yes” Tony brushed him off, “you guys should have known better than to leave me here all lonesome, but who am I kidding? I could probably run circles around the baby agents you would have assigned me.” Coulson did not protest Tony’s words and with a cruel grin Tony continued, “Anyway, that’s of least importance.”

Steve was looking between the two with narrowed, confused eyes. His lips pursed, “What’s going on Tony?” he asked.

Tony grinned at him, wide and ugly, “Let me show you something very interesting Cap” It barely took two taps of his index finger, and he had control of the giant screens of the room, displaying for all to see the information he had found.

“I didn’t know you were a hired pimp Coulson. Or is Howard the pimp in the case?” He asked, enjoying the looks of startled shock on the faces of the people in the room.

“Hey!” One of the males in the room, Clint, going by his bio, protested, “You don’t know him so you don’t get to talk about him that way…” he faltered towards the end, eyes darting back up to the screen.

“Shocking isn’t it?” Tony couldn’t help taunting, “Apparently I’m not here to play housewife just with  the Captain, but to a whole household of superheroes.”

"Tony," Steve started, the genius'. name dripping with an unnamed emotion on his lips.

“It’s detailed very well, in fact, this is my favorite bit” Tony insisted, looking at the screen he began reciting a portion“ ‘‘ _With much research it has been determined that the Avengers initiative has proven unstable in terms of their teamwork. The plan to introduce an omega variable has been put to test. Tony Stark has received appropriate training from his youth in calming distressed alphas, and has a high bond acceptance rate with an impressive ability to create superficial bonds. Final status: Tony Stark as an individual, no. However, 'Omega' Tony Stark would be an asset_.’”

Tony had known, of course, to keep his expectations locked in place. He looked at Steve now, who was staring at the big screen in unveiled shock. ‘Was this real, then?’ Tony wondered, and then ‘Did it matter if it was?’

Tony pushed back his shoulders and jutted his chin out, “I believe we’re done here for today gentlemen, and the singular Lady. I would have said it was a pleasure, but under the circumstances…” He got up from the chair, and made sure to give them a wide berth while making his way to the door. He paused for a moment just beside it, “Dr. Banner, I’m a fan,” he muttered, “I really wish we had met on more scientific terms but,” he shrugged.

Dr. Banner, who had stuck to one corner of the room the moment Tony had taken control of the screens, threw Tony a nervous, but nevertheless present smile, “I’ll be glad to work with a mind like yours in the future Dr. Stark.”

Tony nodded at him once more, and the walked out of then room without a second glance. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello there, so a bit more drama in this chapter. We're still in the setting up phase, buuuut the story should really pick up with a lot more Stony moments from the following chapters. I really love Bruce and Tony as science buddies, so I'm going to be puttering around there as well. Thank you so much for your patience with the delayed update guys. 
> 
> Ps: I'm a feminist, that should give you a hint to the direction this story will take, for those wondering.


	7. Chapter seven.

Steve.

There was a part of Steve that believed he was the man with a plan. In the thirties, the slogan was a great way to reinforce the belief that Steve was a capable alpha leader. It was one of the few things they said about him he related to. Steve liked to be prepared, liked to have all the contingencies locked down. He might have inherited the trait from his mother, who was a very capable nurse.

The wars, for all their terror, had given the Omega population opportunities to fight for their rights. With most Alphas deployed, it was the Omega who held the fort together back home by taking up occupations they would have otherwise been denied.

Steve had grown up in Brooklyn, and as a sick boy with a weak constitution he was bullied on all days ending with a ‘y’. His mother would hold him to her chest after treating his black eye and bloody nose. She always smelled like iodine and an antiseptic cream. In a low hum, she would mumble into his ear, “We’re all born equal Stevie, naked and wailing. Different, yes, but equal nonetheless. Don’t let anyone tell you any different, and don’t you dare tell anyone any different. God would make all of us the same if he loved only one kind of person.”

Steve missed his mother, he missed her so much that some days he would run all the way down to Brooklyn and spend an entire day walking about aimlessly in his old neighborhood.

Now, as Tony left the room, all hard lines and jutting bones, Sarah Rogers' words hit Steve like a slap to the face and he flinched hard at the phantom ache. Natasha, who was closest to him, was the first to register his expression. Her lips were pressed tight together, “Steve..” she started, carefully, her eyes running over his face in worry.

Steve inhaled a deep breath and in three short strides, pulled back his fist, and flung it hard into the screen still displaying that horrifying report. He was breathing hard, oxygen getting trapped somewhere in the bottom of his throat. Coulson took a step towards him, but Steve held a hand up, “I don’t need excuses. Nothing, not even saving the planet was worth this.” He couldn’t recognize his own voice, deep, and cold, so very cold.

“I believed we were fighting for the right cause.” With difficulty, the anger coursing through him still raw and violent, he looked up into one of the cameras he knew was set up in all SHIELD conference rooms, “You will fix this. You will fix it today, or I swear on my own grave that I will never pick up the shield for you ever again.”

Fury was a bastard, but he knew when Steve’s buttons had been pushed.

Steve didn’t bother to stay any longer, the calm he had felt in the morning, waking up to Tony’s scent blanketing him in comfort had vanished, and instead the overwhelming anxiety he felt at being in this displaced world slammed into him with the force of an adamantium enforced sledgehammer.

He walked out of the room, pace quickening as he forewent the elevator for the stairs.

Trying to stifle his building panic, he ran towards the staircase. In his rush he jumped down multiple flights, but his head was too filled with anxiety over Tony to concentrate on his actions. He got to the entrance in time to see Tony get into his private limo. Jarvis closed the door behind him, and when he looked up, his eyes met Steve’s, expression dark. Steve took another step towards them, but Jarvis shook his head at him. And before Steve could respond, Jarvis got into the driver’s seat.

A second later Steve’s phone beeped with a message. Steve almost ignored it, thinking it was a SHIELD official, but a glance towards the moving car made him pull out the device. The message was from an unknown number, it said,  
  
_Master Stark is in shock right now and it would be inadvisable to provoke him further. I hope you have a good explanation prepared before trying to make contact Mr Rogers._  
  
_-Jarvis_

 Steve understood the underlying message, Jarvis wouldn’t let him near Tony until Jarvis was sure Steve wasn’t a danger to Tony. Steve ran a hand through his hair roughly and tugged at it. He felt lost. There was a sense of cruelty in giving him the one thing he wanted after he lost everything, only to rip that away as well. Steve clenched his fists and took off, his feet hitting the asphalt hard as he ran to the only source of comfort he had remaining.

Brooklyn.

Everything was different now, but Steve had found a coffee shop he liked to sit in, when he missed them. The girl at the counter smiled bright at him, but Steve could only manage a partial grimace in return. Coffee was something that really managed to complicate itself over the years, Steve thought absentmindedly, and he was gifted with a flash of Tony fresh after his bath that morning, inhaling his coffee like an aphrodisiac. The sight had made Steve blush fire engine red, warmth curling hot at the pit of his stomach. Now, the same memory gripped and twisted his heart till it ached.

Steve grabbed his coffee and moved to a table in the corner. With his current temperament, he would have usually made his way to the Gym to vent at the faceless and nameless punching bags. This, however, was not about him, it was about Tony. And Steve owed it to Tony that he took the time to think, something he had failed to do at the start. He wanted to run to Tony now, to explain that he had not known.

But he refused to be callous enough to throw his own privilege in Tony’s face. Especially not after this. And it was privilege, wasn’t it? Steve never had to worry about someone using him for his Alpha biology. At least nothing he had not consented to, which was why he had not imagined SHIELD capable of something like this. Even thinking about it had made him want to throw up, he clutched at his hair as he stared into the dark pools of his coffee.

“Hey Mister, are you okay?”

Steve blinked down, disoriented, at the little boy tugging at his shirt, “Uh, hey, yeah,” Steve cleared his throat and tried again, “I mean yes, yes I am. Thanks for asking.”

“No problem Mister,” The boy replied cheerfully, “You didn’t sound okay for a minute there.”

Steve’s brow furrowed in confusion, “What do you mean?” He asked, but before the boy could reply they were interrupted by a sharp call, “David! What did I tell you about running off on your own?” A man in a wheelchair came into their vicinity, and Steve sat up a bit straighter, something about the tone reminded Steve of getting into trouble with his teachers at school.

“It was not allowed” David replied cheekily.

“Yes,” the stranger’s mouth twitched in withheld amusement, “That’s quite right Davy. And you’ve just done the opposite of what was asked of you.”

“But Daddy,” The boy, David, dragged out, “He was so sad. And you also said I should always try to be helpful when I can.”

At this, the man raised a brow and shifted his eyes to meet Steve’s, “I hope he hasn’t bothered you,” he said, apologetic.

Steve shook his head, “No it’s fine.” He tried for another smile and hoped this attempt was better than his first.

“I’m Charles Xavier,” The man introduced himself, eyes softening as they met Steve’s, “And you, my sir, are having quite the day, aren’t you?”

Steve tensed up at the vague insinuation, but the name ‘Charles Xavier’ struck a chord, “Are you..?” He asked carefully, tapping a finger against his forehead. He realized how rude that could be and dropped his hand back to his side, flushing.

Charles, however, gave him a cheerful grin, “Yes, I’m the telepath they warned you about.”

“Daddy! Papa said we should be careful around strangers!” The little boy exclaimed, it was quite odd to see the small child chiding his father.

Charles ran his fingers through the boy’s hair, “Mr. Rogers is not a stranger, love, or rather, he won’t be one for much longer.”

David still looked uncertain, but his father’s words were enough to get him to scramble into the seat opposite Steve’s, “You should talk to Daddy about your problem, he’s an omega too and he works with Unca' Tony on hu-hu-“ He scrunched up his nose adorably on getting stuck and sneaked a look at his father, “humanitarian effort!” he finished brightly, only stumbling once on the syllables.

“Davy, you really should try to learn your words without telepathic aide.” Charles chuckled.

“You and Tony know each other?” Steve asked, surprised. He knew Tony was a social butterfly who had connections more intricate than a spider’s web, but meeting someone who knew Tony in a random coffee shop made him feel something warm, but undefined.  
  
Charles nodded, “Yes, Mr. Stark has been one of the prominent researchers in Omega reproductive health care. He sometimes comes to me when he needs another opinion on new formulas, suppressants, scent repressors, hormone treatment, etc.” Charles leaned forward with a grin, cheeky, but fond, “I think he also considers me his personal therapist,” he tapped the side of his head with his index finger.  
  
Steve would have laughed, that sounded like Tony from the little he knew of the man, but everything was just an acidic reminder of how bad he had messed up. He should have paid attention , shouldn’t have trust Fury easily, should have checked, should have listened to his gut when it told him Tony didn’t want this.  
  
“...Mr. Rogers? Are you okay?” Charles looked at him with worry, eyes running over Steve’s face expression melting into understanding. Steve looked back at him desperately, “What-” He swallowed thickly, his voice was breathy and trembling, “What do I do now Mr. Xavier?”. Steve had always believed he would do right by his Omega, he would protect them and give them the respect they had deserved. And Tony deserved so much better.

Charles clasped his palms in front of himself, “You need to understand Mr. Rogers, Tony, he’s never going to put himself before the needs of others when it really counts. He’ll do stupid things, he’ll drive you crazy, but he’s also the guy who’ll give up a week’s worth of sleep so that he can install a heating pad in your wheelchair. Things always seem to work against Tony, however. And as long as he carries the mantle of Stark Industries, Tony has little control over his future. Sure, the laws give Omegas the right to Marry whomever they wish to, take up whichever job, receive equal pay, and discrimination is illegal. But reality? Reality works differently Mr. Rogers. Tony would lose everything if he didn’t follow Howard’s tune.”

Steve frowned, he could feel disgust building up towards Howard Stark, what parent would force their child into such a situation. “Why doesn’t Tony just leave then?”

Charles sighed, “Tony doesn’t give a fuck about the money personally,” He rummaged into his pockets and pulled out his wallet, from there he fished out a strip of pills, “These are scent suppressants, it’s also what lets me come to a coffee shop despite being only three days away from my next heat. This is what Tony cares about, among other developments. Tony needs Stark Industry funding to develop pills like these and get them into the market as soon as possible.”

Steve shook his head, the picture was starting to become clearer now, and Steve didn’t like what he saw. “I’ll break it off then, I’m not under any obligation-”

“Mr. Rogers,” Charles interrupted him, pity and sympathy heavy in his voice, “How do you think Howard Stark will react to the news that Tony couldn’t manage to keep you happy? And if not you, then it would be another alpha.”

Steve couldn’t hold back the low growl of displeasure at the thought of Tony bound to another alpha in an unfair contract. Steve wanted to protect Tony, and he had to think of a way this would work out. He wouldn’t let either Howard Stark or SHIELD have any real leeway over Tony’s life anymore.

Charles was smiling again, “You’ll think of something Mr. Rogers, I hear you’re quite the strategist.”

Steve the gave the man a hesitant smile in response, and Davy, who had been surprisingly quiet for the duration of the conversation, started tugging Steve out of his chair, “This is the part where you go to save the Omega Steve!” He quickly glanced back at his father and then continued, “Not because Omegas need saving, but because if someone can help, they should” His words were by rote, and Steve finally let out a soft laugh.  
  
“You’ve got a brilliant son Mr. Xavier.”

“And don’t we know it,” came the reply from an Alpha who stepped behind Charles’ wheelchair to grasp the handles.

“Erik! This is Steve Rogers, Mr. Rogers-”

“Call me Steve, please. It’s the least after roping you into counseling me as well.” Steve said.

Charles’ smile brightened, “Call me Charles then, and this is my husband Erik Lehnsherr. We won’t keep you for longer Steve, introductions can be made the next time, you should go to Tony now. I’ll let Jarvis know you’re coming.”

Steve was touched by gratitude towards the man. He nodded his farewell, “Thank you so much Charles, let me know if you ever need anything at all. It was nice meeting you too Erik, sorry for leaving this soon.”

Erik waved a careless hand, “If Charles says you have somewhere to be, you better make your way over quick. We can talk the next time we meet.”

David gave Steve a quick hug, and then kept waving till Steve was out of sight from the coffee shop. Steve hoped he would get to meet them again soon.

It didn’t take him long to make his way over to the Stark tower, barely breaking a sweat. Jarvis intercepted him in the lobby, and for a moment Steve feared he would be turned away.

“You have the strangest fate Mr. Rogers. Charles Xavier just called to let me know he would vouch for you. When I asked you to come prepared, I didn’t imagine you would be as thorough to recruit a mind reader to your cause,” Jarvis still looked hesitant of Steve, but the cold looked from earlier was gone.

“Where’s Tony?” Steve asked, his mind working on a singular track.

“Mr. Stark is on the top floor. He has decided to have a little tête-à-tête, but you should be able to find him well enough.” Jarvis replied.

Steve thanked Jarvis and then took the main elevator, sighing in relief when he wasn’t locked out...or in. The elevator opened on the top floor and Steve was hit with the strong stench of alcohol and the sight of at least a hundred people lounging about, drinking or dancing in the apartment. Steve winced the the loud music hitting his ears harshly. He took a step in carefully a was immediately confronted by a very drunk Tony Stark.  
  
“Well, well, well, look what the cat dragged in. If it isn’t my darling husband. Such big muscles you have sweetheart..” Tony teased, stepping right into Steve’s personal space, “All the easier to stab me in the back with, I suppose.”  
  
Drunk, and cruel, Tony was still the most beautiful person in the room, and Steve felt the proverbial knife in his own gut give a sharp twist at the sight of those gorgeous red rimmed brown eyes.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AAAAH It's obscenely late here but I've finally managed to updateeee!!! \\(^.^)/
> 
> Okay, so the next few chapters will be in Tony's pov, and a LOT will go down, so buckle up folks! <3 Sorry if this chapter was a little rushed, I promise to do better with the next one!


	8. Chapter eight.

Tony was drunk. On what? He took a sniff out of the shot glass in his hand, well, it was anyone’s guess really. He'd beelined to the scotch a couple of seconds after getting home from SHIELD. He knocked back three glasses, and then a phone call was enough to get as many people into his apartment as he could tolerate without the pressure in his head slipping into a full-blown migraine.

Migraines, Tony had those since he was thirteen. His father had sneered at him for it, somehow attributed it to Tony being an omega and his ‘weaker constitution’. Sometimes Tony felt like buying out the biology section of the nearest bookstore and delivering the content to his father himself. His father was supposed to be a genius; _a genius who couldn’t look past his own convictions_.

But for all the things Tony had imagined his father capable, this really took the cake. He had always said Tony was past discipline, even under an Alpha’s firm hand. _‘Didn’t think you’d get me a harem instead, Dad’_ Tony thought, holding back a sarcastic snicker. His phone pinged, and Tony peered down at it trying to read the slightly blurry letters.

_‘Captain Rogers is here.’_

Well that sobered him right up. Captain Rogers. Captain America. Tony should have known better than to trust the alias. Tony had been so young when his father had begun his ‘training’. Tony hadn’t known then, of course, but now he understood all too well. His father had paraded Military men through Tony’s bedroom, forcing Tony to lay beside the soldiers. In the beginning, Tony had been nervous beyond himself. He had whimpered, and cried, tried to leave the first few times. But it was futile, Howard had made sure that he was locked in with the soldier till morning. Tony’s pheromones would pour out of him in waves, the stress turning his scent pungent. A large numbers of the soldiers who were locked in with him were traumatized, and suffered complex PTSD. Most of them looked horrified with what was going on as well, like they wanted to bolt out themselves.

But after a while Tony’s pheromones would react to the Alpha in the room, it was a distraction mechanism his mind employed. His stress pheromones would turn into calming pheromones, the high level of emotion being enough to drug any regular alpha into a state of blissful incoherence. This wasn’t an easy achievement, and Howard had tested Tony repeatedly, went over his blood work and administered enhancements.

The Alphas weren’t always calm. There were always the few who had reacted to their trauma with violence. After the first-time he was slugged across the face at fifteen, Tony knew to stay away when an Alpha’s scent spiked a certain way. He learned that it wasn’t a good idea to touch someone having a nightmare, and if he could manage it, he had to talk them down from a safe distance while making himself look as non-threatening as possible.

This made it easy for Tony to respond to Steve’s night terror. His pheromones had responded as trained, they sent out pulses of _calmcalmcalm._ The situation had made Tony a lot more sympathetic towards Steve, the Alpha’s panic had been…on a different level to the ones Tony had dealt with as a kid. It was a scorching void of pain and panic, like someone reaching in and squeezing your lungs into their fists.

But witnessing the man in his weak moment had made something in Tony relax. For a short moment, Tony though he could trust the Captain. ' _Yeah, no more Steve, cap, or even Rogers….he’s captain America through and through.'_ Tony was struck with the memory of Steve lying beside him soft-eyed and open after his nightmare, telling Tony he didn’t want Captain America’s omega.

_'Well, fool me once shame on you, fool me twice…'_

Tony made his way to the elevator, chugging down the remnants of his drink.  He carefully schooled his expression into one of casual disregard. He wasn’t twelve anymore, and it wasn’t the first time he’d been kicked in the ass by things like ‘trust’. He could do this, just as he’d always had. In front of Howard, Maria, Obie and all those press reporters, again and again. Deep breath, smile, don’t let them see, never let them see.

One look at the Captain’s face and Tony almost blanched. The Captain’s eyes were blue as the clear sky, earnest and honest, they made it so easy to give his faith to the Captain, to make him think that maybe, just maybe he would be that one person Tony could turn his back to and not have it stabbed. Apparently not, and Tony stated as such, relishing in the Captain’s flinch at his open taunt.

Steve’s expression was intense as he looked down at Tony, the little furrow between his brow deepening. His mouth set into a determined line, “Tony, we need to talk,” he said, running his hand through his cropped blonde locks. The military cut suited the Captain better than most, and it frustrated Tony that the man barely reacted to Tony’s invasion of his personal space. Not when Tony was here, still feeling the effect of the furnace warmth the Captain exuded in spades.

“What’s there to talk about Captain?” Tony asked, the right corner of his mouth quirking up in a half smirk, “I think all opinions were made quite well earlier.”

Steve tucked his hand into his pockets, “No, I believe SHIELD’s made their opinion known, and you’ve made your opinion known- I’ve been playing Kermit the frog in the middle.” His tone was self-depreciating, but Tony could admit being a little taken aback by the words. Tony shook his head to clear it, “Are you feeling bad no one’s asked you for personal input Captain? Well, welcome to my life.” Tony crooned, he reached up and ruffled his hand through Steve’s hair, the patronizing gesture highlighted with a hint of mocking.

Steve’s hand reached up and gripped around Tony’s wrist, it was a light clutch Tony could easily break if he wanted to, but Tony’s eyes darted to Steve’s. Steve just tugged Tony’s hand out of his hair and let it fall, “Just when I thought I would get tired of hearing ‘it’s not the forties anymore’ from Clint, I find myself missing the phrase. And SHIELD sure missed that notice, big time” Steve said, tone dry as sandpaper.

Tony laughed, and then clamped his mouth shut in surprise at the sound, “Yeah,” he replied, wry, “Not everyone has a personalized network to get the message, I guess, and AT&T have been slacking around.”

Steve gave him a lopsided smile Tony struggled not to react to, “Guess we’re lucky you’re a genius then.”

“Guess so,” Tony replied, taking an about-turn before he did something stupid, like agree to listen to Steve’s reasons. He was better than this. He threaded through the throng, tossing an amicable smile or a teasing joke here and there when required.

His couch was empty as expected, people tended to leave Tony his space. It was why he felt comfortable inviting the same people repeatedly. They knew him, knew his rules, and knew to keep them, “Take a seat, Captain” Tony ordered, grabbing another drink from a passing waiter. He didn’t have to turn to know that the Captain had been hot on his heels.

Steve hesitated for a moment, possibly waiting for Tony himself to sit(The 1940’s chivalry had to run out of charm at some point-right?), when Tony made no such move Steve lowered himself into the leather two-seater, eyes carefully gauging Tony. 

Tony pointedly kept his eyes on the drink in his hand, a lofty smile on his mouth. The moment Steve was comfortably seated, Tony didn’t waste a second and popped himself right into the Captain’s lap. Steve floundered, his eyes going comically wide, not knowing what to do with the extra weight of the Omega.

“Oh calm down,” Tony laughed, “Or someone will think you’ve never had an Omega sit in your lap before.” Tony’s eyes were smoldering as he raised a brow at the Captain.

“No,” Steve grinded out, forcefully relaxing the tensed lines of his body, “That is a pleasure I’ve not been given yet, pretty sure most Omega had the sixth sense to know that I was clumsy enough to land them on the floor.”

Tony snorted, “Their loss then, Captain, you seem to be doing just fine now.” Tony wriggled a little to get comfortable, hiding his grin at Steve’s sharp intake of breath.

“Calling this fine, would be subjective,” Steve said, his hands coming to awkwardly settle on the tops of his knees, forearms brushing against Tony’s sides at the slightest movement. “But since you've yet to kiss the ground, maybe I’m doing better than I thought.” He cheeks were tinged pink, and his eyes darted around the room, blush growing darker each time his eyes came to rest on the squirming Omega in his lap. “there is a free seat, y’know” he said, angling his head towards the space beside him.

Tony couldn’t imagine anyone thinking Steve would drop them. Ignoring the hard muscle of the thick thighs pressing into the softness of his ass and the rest of Steve’s towering physique, pretty much everything about Steve screamed safety. He was the type who liked to protect his Omega, the perfect knight to a damsel in distress. Too bad Tony was no damsel.

Tony dipped his index finger into his drink, and then sucked the digit into his mouth with a pop, “Where’s the fun in that Captain? If I’m to play lapdog, I should at least reap the benefits.” Steve’s eyes followed the path of his finger, his own tongue darting out to swipe across his flushed bottom lip.

Tony swallowed hard and reminded himself that this was a game, and no matter how hot Captain Roger’s looked under him, with his blushing cheeks and blown pupils, Tony had to be cautious. He had a lot more to lose than the Captain did.

Steve frowned again at Tony’s words, “Tony, we have to break the contract.” He said, blue eyes boring into Tony’s honey-brown ones. “If it’s from my end, I’ll make sure it happens. You don’t have to deal with this.”

Tony laughed right into Steve’s face, “Well Captain, do you really think they’ll let us do what we like, on what? An Omega’s whims?”

“If I tell them I’ll give up the shield otherwise, they will,” Steve’s words were quiet, and for a moment Tony thought he was imagining them. His heart thudded in his chest, and for once he was caught speechless. He didn’t have to know the Captain personally to know what the shield meant to Steve, what his mantle of Captain America meant to millions of people. Tony probably understood it better than Steve himself, he had read all the dissertations. He knew about pre-serum Steve, the one who wanted to do good by his people, the paragon of Alpha even before he became Captain America. And now, in a future where all Steve had was his title, a man out of his time with no connections to his past or future, other than the Shield- Tony took a slow steady breath, “Do you know what you are saying?” he asked Steve, “What would you do without the shield? Where would you go?”

Steve gave him a smile that was more comforting than it had any right being, “I like to think I’m an artist at heart. With a bit of back pay I could go to college maybe, or travel a bit. See the sights.” Steve shrugged, easy as that, “Apparently they have a giant ball of rubber bands somewhere down in Florida. Don’t really know what the attraction is, but I guess I’ll have to see it to know it, yeah?”

“See the sights,” Tony choked out in disbelief, “You want to…see the sights.”

“Well better me than anyone else. Seventy years to catch up on, Justin Bieber concerts and all that.” Steve’s eyes shone in amusement, and Tony just shook his head, “You can’t give up the shield to become a Belieber, Captain, that’s crazy,” his mouth twisted in acquiesce, “But I suppose it would be quite American of you,”

“And I’m nothing if not American,” Steve finished, straight-faced. Tony couldn’t say he wasn’t delighted to know the Captain was a little shit covered in red, white and blue, but that didn’t change reality, “I like to think I’m worth many things Captain,” he murmured, running his palms along Steve’s shoulders, absentmindedly tapping his fingertips along the knotted muscle, “but I know what you can do, and I don’t think even I’m worth depriving the country of you.”

“I beg to differ, I spoke to Mr. Xavier. I think our individual value can be debated.” Steve brought his hands up around tony, not trapping him, but…

“Are you hugging me right now?!” Tony asked him, a little incredulous.

Steve’s dying flush came back to life, “You looked like you needed one. And you’re the one who sat on my lap, Tony.” There was a stubborn pout to his lips and Tony found his hand reaching up involuntarily to press a finger to it. “Even so, Captain, if not me it will be someone else. I’ve read about the Tesseract, and you’re the man for the job.”

Steve grinned under Tony’s finger, “Then we don’t have to play by their rules,”

Tony was taken off-guard for the second time and his hand slid down to Steve’s chest, “What are you suggesting Captain?”

“The contract, it stipulates the conditions between SI and SHIELD. We’d just have to go around it. Or pretend to go with it, at least.” Steve shrugged out,

“You want to pull one over on SHIELD?” Tony turned the idea over in his head. It had occurred to him previously, like a pipe dream, but he never encouraged it thinking he wouldn’t receive the support required. And now Steve was handing him his freedom, albeit conditional, on a silver platter. “What about the others?” Tony asked, “this won’t work with just you and I exchanging promise rings, we need the whole mariachi band.”

“They will agree. I’ll make sure of it.” Steve said with complete conviction, and Tony was reminded of the fact that this man had been a leader and strategist of his team in WWII.

“Go big or go home” Tony whispered to himself, feeling a little bewildered at the turn of events. He narrowed his eyes, "How do I know you're not trying to trick me into complacency?" he asked.

"I'm not asking you to trust me" Steve said, an unreadable expression flashing across his face, "just trust that we want the same thing,"

"And what is that, Captain?" Tony heard himself questioning.

"...I didn't fight a war for just a part of the population," Steve said, not wavering in his straightforward gaze.

Tony just stared at him for a while, not sure what to make of the man. “Guess we’re doing this then,” he said finally, staring to shift off Steve’s lap now that he didn’t have to continue with a power play, but Steve’s hands came to grip at his waist, holding him in place, “I do have one more condition,” Steve said, and despite the confidence in his gestures, his expression was shy as Tony looked down at him in curiosity, “Well, what is it Captain? If I’m going to be housing the avengers then there are plans to be made, dresses to be sewn, just regular houseomega things, that I totally know how to do-“

“I’d like to be friends,” Steve interrupted him, the words dripping in sweet sincerity. He would make Tony diabetic if this continued. Tony wrapped his arms around Steve’s neck and leaned forward, till all he could see was blue, blue eyes, “Captain, _Steve_ , I’m sitting here, a drunk and malleable lap-full of Omega, and you’re saying you want to be _friends_?” Tony’s voice pitched up towards the end, incredulous, but Steve did not even blink, “Friends,” he stated firmly, he cupped Tony’s cheek, brushing a finger across his cheekbone, “You’re beautiful Tony, but as much as I might you, you don’t want me.”

“Quick to make judgements there, Captain” Tony replied, trying to fight back his own building blush (he would never live it down), “but I’ll play your game.” he gracefully lifted himself out of Steve’s hold and pulled out his phone to text Jarvis. “You can get your troop here by the end of the week and I’ll have things setup for you guys in the tower. We can slumber party!”

“Sure Tony,” Steve said, smiling up at him, slow and easy, and Tony told himself that he did not want to crawl right back into the space between the Captain’s thighs. He quickly sent Pepper a text, He didn't want to worry Rhodey, but Pepper would listen to Tony whine long enough for him to get his head back on right. He refused to follow in his father and grandfather's footsteps and become another one of Steve's simpering fans. 

He was a Stark, and his will was iron. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woohoooo! Another update! I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. I'm crawling further into Stony territory now, which makes me all happy and gooey inside. I love these two so much. This chapter was a bit longer than my average, but I didn't want to cut the scene off. Sorry about any typos >.<, if you notice any feel free to point it out and I'll fix them asap.
> 
> Ps: I finally get to delve into Steve's humor, I felt like he had too much going on for me to really explore it earlier, so I'm glad to have the opportunity to now. I hope it doesn't come off as OOC (>.<)


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